Juniper Shuey
Howard House
604 Second Ave, 256-6399
Through Aug 27.

INSTALLATION- AND VIDEO-ARTIST Juniper Shuey's first solo gallery exhibition continues his exploration of the complexity of human interactions. In his past work, Shuey typically used himself as the primary agent of interaction, mostly by being physically present as part of the piece. The artist's desire to provoke an immediate response from the viewer often put Shuey in a vulnerable position. During his 2004 Bumbershoot performance/installation Dreamer, where he lay immobile on the floor, the public response was to torment him. In a departure, and for safety's sake, none of the work in Mystery in Which We All Participate requires Shuey's presence. The six works on view feature a cast of other people, all friends of the artist, and if you know anything about his relationship with them or about their art, the work is infused with an extra bit of meaning. The strongest pieces in the show, Revelation of Unexpected Cooperation and Each One Speaking Sweetly to the Other, are about relationships, specifically couples (or couplings). Given that, Individualization, where the artist is pacing around and talking to himself, seems like an older idea that Shuey has long since resolved. You Will Find Yourself Eventually, the first work you encounter when you enter the gallery, is a little dated, as well.

In the foreground of Revelation of Unexpected Cooperation two construction workers (Eric Runds and Shawn Landis) methodically frame out, build, then tear down a wall. They are side by side, backs to the viewer, working in tandem. This image is superimposed onto one of a man (Jordan M.) and a woman (Zoe Scofield) performing a choreographed ritual. The man is dressed in a wedding suit and outfitted with a papier-mâché horse head and she is his elk bride. At first, the pairing of these two narratives seems arbitrary and easily dismissed as an unsuccessful experiment. Viewer interaction has always been an integral aspect to Shuey's work, though, and Revelation requires the simple action of sitting down and watching the entire eleven-minute video. It is only then that the combined narratives make sense. The builders share an unspoken language and their movements are simpatico, while the rhythm of the wedding couple is edited to be staccato. Like the beginning and end of a relationship, the loop can't be said to begin with the wall's construction or end with its destruction.

Each One Speaking Sweetly to the Other is as darkly poetic as its title. An overhead projection casts an image onto a table. Two wooden plates are placed directly across from one another. One plate is encircled by a pair of male hands (Shuey), the other by a pair of female hands (Toi Sennhauser). The hands convey a conversation: "Please," "Come here," and "Why?" In time, they each get up, retrieve an apple, and place it on the other's plate. When they bite into them, the hollow apples bleed—hers white, his red. There is a hint of violence as the two gorge themselves on the apples. She keeps her plate a clean pool of white while his red splatters. Sated, they each drink and lick their plates clean. The apple is a loaded icon in art and in this case, the apple of discord comes to mind. (Discord, the uninvited goddess, threw a golden apple inscribed "For the Fairest" into a banquet of a gods and goddesses. The results led to the Judgment of Paris and ultimately to the Trojan War.) The apple of discord inevitably shows up in any relationship, a brown spot that taints the simplest of interactions if left to rot. Like Revelation, wherever you begin viewing the piece informs your interpretation.

I Am the One That I Want is a sculpture of the Weeping Buddha made of white latex and inflated with air. The quivering figure's presence is a more literal representation of the spiritual dimension often found in Shuey's work. The Buddhist belief of reincarnation or transmigration can be applied here—the artist's new body of work retains elements of his past work while